Sunday, September 6, 2009

PoV – Search for formula against West Asia

As Singapore embarked on the West Asian training trip with games against Kuwait and Oman, it is not just to prepare for the upcoming Asian Cup qualifiers against Iraq and Palestine, it is the continue search for the formula against West Asia.

Many probably have forgotten this year is the tenth year since Asian Football Confederation (AFC) ended the geography divide of East and West for Asian Nations.

Singapore have certainly suffered from that decision make in 1997 but it did open the eyes of many who were ignorant of the development of football elsewhere in Asia.

Right from the beginning, AFC dealt Singapore a terrible hand as 2 West Asian countries – Kuwait and Lebanon – were grouped with the Republic for the 1998 World Cup Asian Preliminary Round.

By the end of the campaign, Singapore have just gather 1 point while scoring just 2 goals and conceding 8 goals against the 2 West Asian countries – Kuwait and Lebanon – in 4 games.

This performance showed the shortfall Singapore would have to make up in the years ahead as no longer would the Republic hoped to get minnows like Maldives and Nepal etc.

But the learning curve was no bed of roses as a victory for the West Asian countries against Singapore were almost a certainty even in a friendly let alone a competitive game.

UAE and Qatar as well as a non ‘A” international against Jordan backed up that statement with easy victories for the oppositions in friendlies.

The suffering continued with the result in the 2002 World Cup Asian Preliminary Round having a similar looked to the 1998 World Cup Asian Preliminary Round as Singapore had also gather 1 point while scoring just 2 goals and conceding 8 goals against the 2 West Asian countries – Kuwait and Bahrain – in 4 games.

Thus, the light at the end of the tunnel looked like an impossible dream for Singapore until the 2004 Asian Cup qualifiers when a 2-0 victory against Palestine was achieved at the Jalan Besar Stadium in Singapore.

But there is still the need to prove the victory against Palestine was no flash in the pan as away from the shore of Singapore, the results were still not satisfactory with no point or goal collected by Singapore while conceding 6 goals in 2 games against Kuwait and Qatar.

Therefore, the upcoming 2007 Asian Cup qualifiers when Singapore squared up against Iraq and Palestine, it would be the litmus test to show a decade since the ending of the geography divide of East and West for Asian Nations, Singapore have finally wised up and Singapore have the formula for West Asia.

For without the formula against West Asia, Singapore destiny for both the Asian Cup and World Cup would always end at the first hurdle in the West.